Eclairs and perfect wishes
by JammyWammy
Summary: [Oneshot] Cloud is late again, but this is not your typical "Cloud is late again and he finds Tifa crying and angry making him feel guilty" kind of fic, nope. What will he find when he comes home very very late that night? How will he apologize for it? A family fluff if you may.


Cloud killed the engine and unmounted his motorbike in front of a well known bakery in the village of Kalm, he opened his compartment to retrieve the needed package to be delivered to the owner of the bakeshop, he slowly inhaled the tempting smell of freshly baked bread making him realize his neglected hunger, suddenly calling for his attention. He suddenly remembered the packed lunch that Tifa gave him this morning, hidden away in his Fenrir, forgotten.

 _I should eat first before I deliver in Gold Saucer_. He thought as he opened the oak doors, the jingle of the bell above his head sounded throughout the small but cozy bakeshop.

"Hello? Strife delivery service, I've got a package for Mr. Davidson." He called out, he was still not used to doing that but he had to. An elderly man appeared from the back door, probably the kitchen, while he wiped his hands clean. He smiled brightly when he saw his blonde delivery boy.

"Hello there, I was waiting for those, do you need a drink or something else young man?" He kindly asked the blonde warrior who politely shook his head, then the blond handed it to the man and pulled out something from his back.

"No, thank you sir, but I just you need you to sign this." He handed over his small clipboard and a pen, the old man wore his glasses and looked for his name on the bottom, then he started scribbling away his signature and picked up something from his pocket. He handed the envelope to Cloud who peeked inside and saw that it was his pay.

"Thank you so much sir." He gave the man a small smile and turned around to find a place to eat his lunch but he was stopped when the old man spoke.

"Wait young man." He said then he slowly went on his way behind the cash register to retrieve something, Cloud turned back around again and patiently waited for him, he approached him at the cash register when the old man handed him a box with a red ribbon around it. Cloud took it hesitantly then stared at it questioningly.

"Those are eclairs, they're my specialty and I want you to take them home." He said with a gentle smile making Cloud raise his eyebrows.

"Wow, ummm thanks... a lot." He said awkwardly as he scratched the back of his head. The old man chuckled wholeheartedly.

"You have a family?" He suddenly asked making the warrior look at him with wide eyes. They stared at each other for a while before the blond spoke.

"Yes..." He said as he blushed slightly. The old man smiled.

"Kids?" The man asked, making Cloud clear his throat and look around as if he was talking to a fellow conspirator about buying some drugs.

"Yes... Two." He said quietly making the man smile again.

"Well then, they will surely like those, now run along so you can give those to them on time." The man said as he put on his glasses again as he looked down at small slips of paper in front of him. Cloud nodded his head and started walking out the door.

"Thanks again." He said before he closed the door behind him. He sighed as he stared at the box, and he couldn't wait to make it home that night so he give them their surprise.

If only he can make it on time.

* * *

"Cloud, what time will you be coming home?" Tifa asked from the other end of the line as Cloud held his phone to his ear, as he munched away the sandwich Tifa gave him while he sat on a field of flowers.

"I don't know yet but I really want to come home early, still have a delivery to Gold saucer." He said while he chewed his food while Tifa sighed on the other line.

"Alright then, be careful on your way there and on your way home." He grunted a response. "Are you eating right now?" She asked and he could imagine the amusement in her face making him smirk.

"Yeah, how did you guess?"

"I could hear it while you talked." She giggled while he chuckled. "Well, better hurry up so you can make it on time, I'll see you later okay? Bye."

"Bye." He flipped his phone shut, then he took another bite at his delicious lunch.

* * *

Tifa hummed as she stirred the sauce that was boiling in the pot, she went over to the chopping board and added the last ingredients to her sauce before she placed it on the sink to be washed.

"You think Cloud will be home early?" Denzel asked as he scribbled away on the counter top with Marlene sitting beside him, doing the same thing.

"I hope so Denz, I called him and he said he wanted to come home early today." She told her adopted child making him look up with a bright smile on his face.

"Hurry up Denzel, you better finish that before Cloud comes back!" Marlene exclaimed as she shook Denzel by the shoulder that made him roll his eyes. Tifa looked over her shoulder and giggled at the two.

"Yeah yeah, I'm doing it! I'm doing it!" He answered back while smiling slightly as he went back on his drawing and coloring.

* * *

 _Dammit._ Cloud cursed himself as he sped on his way home, it was late, really late and he was very disappointed that he didn't made it on time, he just hoped that the eclairs were okay considering the way he was speeding.

After a long and disappointing ride, he had finally reached their home and parked his bike in the garage near the bar. He pulled up his goggles from his eyes and sighed while he closed his eyes, he looked at his phone and saw the time, it was 2:13 in the morning, he sighed again and unmounted Fenrir, he fished out his keys while he walked towards the door and opened it quietly. He sneaked in, hoping that he would not make any noise to wake up the residence of Seventh heaven. It was dark, Tifa probably forgot to open the night light for him which she always left open so he can see his way upstairs, so he reached for the nearest light switch and his eyes widened at what he saw.

Colorful streamers were hanged at the ceiling and walls while balloons were scattered on the floor, but what really caught his eyes were the huge sign that was on top of the bar with the words "Happy Birthday Cloud" written on it. His heart lurched when he realized what this was about, and for him being a complete idiot because he forgot his own birthday. He looked ahead and saw something on the table top, he slowly approached it, he playfully kicked a red balloon while he did, making him slightly smirk. But his half smirk became a genuine smile when he finally saw the object on the table, or rather, objects.

In the middle was a cake, with vanilla icing and strawberries around it. It was his favorite and only Tifa could make it the way he wanted it, 'We love you' was written on top of it making him smile wider. Then beside the cake is a handmade birthday card, courtesy of Marlene and Denzel, saying happy birthday to him and has a picture of the four of them, drawn and colored by his two adopted children. He chuckled as he stared at it for a while, then his expression suddenly turned serious and started running towards the fridge, he sighed sadly when he saw that there was a whole birthday feast for him, all wrapped up and stored away. He closed the fridge slowly and paused for a while before he started going up the stairs quietly. He avoided the floor boards that particularly creak and reached the kids' bedroom, he silently peeked inside and smiled sadly when he saw their sleeping forms, he closed the door again then proceeded to the other room, which is Tifa's. He carefully opened the door, knowing that she was very light sleeper like him, but it was a good thing he has exceptional stealth as well, successfully making him go over to her without waking her up. He kneeled down to take a good look at her face, because of his mako infusions, he could clearly see her beauty even in the dark. His lips lifted upward as he appreciated his childhood friend and all the things she had done for him without asking anything in return.

"Tifa..." He whispered to her as he caressed her hair gently. "Tifa... Hey..." He heard her groan and shift in her sleep.

"Cloud...?" She asked sleepily as she slowly helped herself up with her elbow. "Hey... You just got home...?"

"Yeah... I'm sorry Teef..." He told her, voice full of regret but Tifa only shook her head.

"Don't worry about it, I'm just glad you're safe..." She smiled as she cup his cheek, he leaned back at her palm and kissed it gently making her blush.

"I saw everything downstairs." He said in slight amusement. Tifa giggled.

"Yeah... About that... That was supposed to be a surprise party, but that didn't really work out." She said sheepishly making him chuckle.

"Well, who says that the party's over?" He asked his childhood friend with an eyebrow raised. Tifa raised her eyebrow as well and looked at the clock in her nightstand.

"But it's two in the morning."

"It's okay... I'll be having the day off tomorrow anyway." He said while he shrugged, making her smile.

"Really?" She asked and he nodded.

"You should close the bar too, because..." He trailed off then took something out of his pocket. They were VIP passes to Gold saucer making Tifa's eyes widen. "Dio gave these to me when I delivered to him, along with a weird looking underwear that I didn't take..." His face twisted into disgust which made Tifa's jaw drop and started laughing.

"You should have taken it and wear it to your birthday party." Tifa said chuckling making Cloud sneer at her.

"Very funny Teef, just go downstairs will you? I'll go wake the kids." He said quietly with a smirk, Tifa giggled and slid out of her bed.

"Okay, okay, I'll heat up the food now okay?" She said as she walked past him, but not before she placed a kiss on his cheek that made him blush. As she walked towards the stairs, the blond warrior slowly placed his gloved finger on the same cheek with slightly wide eyes. He shook his head when he remembered that he will wake up the kids. He hurriedly went over to their room and opened the door without a care in the world, still distracted about the kiss.

"Denzel... Marlene..." He shook both kids who started groaning in protest.

"What...?" Denzel asked groggily but when he saw who was waking him up, he instantly forgot the he was sleepy and shot up making the blond jump. "CLOUD!" His loud voice instantly awoke Marlene and did the same thing.

"CLOUD! You're home!" She slid out of bed then hugged the man on his right leg while Denzel grabbed the other one.

"Did you see the surprise downstairs?!" Denzel asked him cheerily while the blond nodded.

"Yes, Thank you for the card." He ruffled both of their heads and the kids laughed. "Now come on, Tifa's waiting downstairs." The children's eyes widened when he said that which made them suddenly grab the blond by his hands and started to drag him down the stairs, he made an 'oomff' sound when he bumped his shoulder on the door frame.

Tifa giggled when she heard thundering footsteps coming down the stairs. She looked over where they were coming down from and smiled.

"Tifa! We're going to have the party!" Denzel exclaimed in excitement as they continued to drag the blond who was smirking at their heads.

"We have to eat that cake! I was so excited over it since this morning!" Marlene piped as she sat down on the chair in the dining table that Tifa had set up for their little family party.

"Alright guys, we're going to eat now, but first, we have to sing a birthday song to Cloud." She grinned at her favorite blond making him scratch his head.

"Ummm..." But he was too late to protest, for Tifa was already on her way to the table carrying the cake with a small candle on top. He blushed when the three of them started singing and when the cake was placed on the table, the kids told him to make a wish and blow it, which he did. He closed his eyes for a while then when he opened them again, he blew the candle but Marlene and Denzel blew along with him, making him laugh, they all clapped their hands after that. Then he handed the kids their eclairs, the box that the baker gave him and they were happier than ever, jumping up and down in excitement.

* * *

"What did you wish for Cloud?" Denzel asked his father figure as he munched on his food, Cloud raised an eyebrow at him.

"If I tell you, it will not come true." He said as he took a bite at his meatball. Then he looked ahead where Tifa sat across from him, he stared at her face while she conversed happily with Marlene, her beautiful face filled with laughter, emitting a small smile from him. Then she noticed him looking at her and she smiled at him, the sweetest smile she could, the only one she gives for him. He smiled back while he clutched the small box in his left pocket and hoped that his birthday wish would come true.

That she was going to say yes.


End file.
